The defense behind Dallas Keuchel did its part with double plays to end the first, second and third innings. But when you’re walking six, striking out just one and allowing a deflating three-run home run, there isn’t much a defense can do. …

Amid the coinciding struggles and turnover in the Astros bullpen, Brad Mills turned to Wilton Lopez as his pseudo-closer. That’s about as definitive as he would get. Francisco Cordero has been poor in save situations, and Lopez has been the most consistent righthander out of the bullpen this season. …

The Astros won’t know for a few years if the prospects they acquired during this month’s trades will develop. And although the sample size is small, a quick look at how the newest members of the Astros organization have fared: …

There was palpable tension in the Astros’ clubhouse before Sunday’s game at Minute Maid Park. With the arrival of another castaway — infielder Steve Pearce off waivers from Baltimore — there were 26 players present for a team limited to 25.
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The Astros enter July’s mercifully placed final day at 3-23 for the month, which assures they will surpass the team’s previous marks of futility: a 4-20 record in April 1969 and a 5-24 month in July 1962, the team’s first. …

The team that fired its bullpen coach and replaced him with nobody appeared to be the one that had the more stable relief pitching Monday night. That would be the Milwaukee Brewers, whose bullpen merely leaked while the shorthanded unit of the Astros melted down in Houston’s 8-7 loss at Miller Park. …